In Rainbows released

The early review by Erik (who got it yesterday) is very good -- Kristen , Ben and Scott haven't offered opinions yet -- and so this morning I paid a cheapskate £1.45 (about 3 bucks) to download a copy of Radiohead's "In Rainbows" which is available here.

Eight songs in, I like it a lot -- it's much better than "Hail to the Thief," but not as great as "OK Computer" or "Kid A".

Perhaps more significant than the music, however, is the means and method of distribution: this is the first major release by a band directly to the public with no record company middlemen whatsoever. That's a big deal, and a line in the sand going forward -- if the "honor system" sales technique does well for Radiohead (and there's no reason to think it won't) you can expect to see more bands go their own way over the next decade.